VIDEO: How the Hill ice rink is made

By
Eileen Faust, The Mercury

Sunday, November 18, 2012

POTTSTOWN — The formation of a hockey rink is a long process aimed at icy perfection and it starts in an unusual way — with sand.

The maintenance crew at the Hill School’s ice rink gave The Mercury access to its weeklong process of creating the school’s hockey rink in the beginning of October and what it looks like at first is an indoor beach — maybe on a winter’s day.

The difference in temperature inside the ice rink building on Chestnut Street was so much cooler than the humid outside air that the windows were fogged up when Jim Heater, assistant rink manager, explained the process.

A layer of yellow sand is laid down and staff start spraying it with water, a process that last several hours, until the sand is soaked. The cooling system underneath the sand freezes it, creating a perfect base for several more layers of water to be sprayed and then frozen.

Heater said there is a total of 30-40 coats of water sprayed on the ice at this point.

“We build up the ice so it covers the sensors,” said Heater. The sensors give back readings on the temperature of the ice and the surface right above it.

“The toughest part is the edges. The ice likes to compress,” which means the crew must check for gaps and fill them in with crushed ice and water. The process can sometimes be delayed when the outside air gets too warm, making it tough to keep the rink frozen through.

When the ice reaches the right temperature the crew sprays a fine mist of white paint on top so it “looks like a sheet of paper,” said Heater. The staff then takes a full day to properly lay down lines where the goal lines, center lines and circles are to be placed, a tedious but necessary task. Each line and circle must be up to league standards or it has to be done over.

The last piece put in place is the large Hill School logo before a final layer of ice is sprayed on top.

Heater said the ice is about 2 inches thick once the rink is complete.